[Munch]

That reflects what the V500 MoM says and the 900 also I believe. It gives lower speeds for your shift points for the first 500-600 miles then recommends you go to a qualified mechanic to have any adjustments made and the oil change, then resume normal riding practices at a regular shifting interval.

[Munch]

Thats cool… one thing I learned from my dealer for our 900’s on pSI…. the back is better set to 45 to 48 and the front was set to 35. I asked around and apparently this is a well documented thing. Let me know how you like the wider rears! (sorry about the PSI suggestion… figured I would throw it at ya for the risk of saving you some money)
Also check to see maybe if your suspension may need tuning a bit better for your weight. I keep mine at the standard as according to the MoM it fits my weight.

[Munch]

Man its good to hear your still loving your bike. I get on the Classic Lt every chance I get. Unfortunately it seems its monsoon season here in NC. GRRRR , I can stand the cold…I can deal with the wet…but both… not happening.
Why did you change the tires so soon?

[Munch]

My questions would be where you plan to ride and what you need the bike to be capable of. I would not be too much concerned with the Torque on a 250 in a cruiser type, its there without a doubt but unless you just completely lose all of your learning skillz its gonna be a non issue.
After all I have read and even taking the MSF course on a Buell Blast… I wouldn’t recommend it. For me 5’10” 165 lbs it was cramped. I felt like a little kid with his arms tucked in trying to avoid touching something gross. Not to mention that the Blast is plagued with recall after recall.
If you run sports bikes I definitely recommend under 600 cc’s. Most sport bike types that I have seen and read about are built more for quickness and nimbleness. Cruiser types…250’s are great starters but will leave you wanting more in a short manner of time. 500’s are a good compromise for starting and having enough to progress with for a while. If you are absolute beginner…..sit on everything you can, then leave the showroom before making a decision and be honest about your skill,s expectations, and needs. Staring at the shiny thing in front of you is not good for helping that process :^) .
I started on the Kawi Vulcan 500. Its short in length, low center of gravity, and relatively light. If I didn’t have significant others wanting to ride with me so much I would have kept her. She is very forgiving but has enough umph to keep the risks real. Very stable and capable at highway speeds and you have minimum worries with getting pushed by the wind. Parking lots and slow travel….she can weave and bob with the best of em. Think of it as a 250 X2 lol.
Really though you need to assess what you need and what you HONESTLY know. Then sit on the contenders and try and get the FEEL of whats comfortable to you.

[Munch]

Those are the ones I got!… Man be careful with them pockets…. the bottom stops at your knees. Yea they are comfortable too…. real nice for keeping the windchill off ya.

[Munch]

Glad to hear your pressing your skills further! I tried to find my chicken strips on the 900 …apparently I have none. By accident I ended up getting my ties muddy after washing it and rode to work the next day….. .hmm…. no mud anywhere except past the tread patch on the sidewall. Seems I have gotten more comfortable turning her tight then I imagined. As big as she is I can still bang a U-ey on a two lane with some change to spare!
Don’t do face book or the other one. Too many people in this world I don’t get along with. Heck I am amazed y’all can put up with me! :^)
Let me know what you think about the bike group… I looked into some locally here but I am concerned at times about some of the groups. That and I am afraid I work to much to be able to do the runs and such that some might consider to be paramount for membership.
Oh yea…. don’t forget about us lil folks.

[Munch]

Assuming you know how to handle your car.
Though parking lot exercises are good basic skill builders…. in traffic and at higher rates of speed those drills are very minimized. Try that figure 8 on a freeway to dodge a newly flipped over banana truck and you end up at best sliding into a mess. Or lets just throw in highway speeds and a soccer mom not paying attention…. Those cones in the parking lot are alot easier to predict then the insane actions of another breathing person.
Parking lot skills are great for basic and very necessary skills but I would not use them to judge your “road worthiness” by them. Under 30 mph… great! Now you know you can avoid grandma in the mall parking lot just as her medication starts to wear off. 55 mph back roads and a sudden raccoon fest on a blind curve…. nope… no weave gonna save a critter there.
300 hours is a bit extreme. Use the time to get comfortable with your bike…. comfort comes at your pace… not what someone or some manuals think. Some learn more easily… some just have a blond inside dieing to get out.
Most of my time is spent on a super slab. When I get the chance I try to find stretches that are less traveled and try to figure out the most likely time when they are even more lightly used. Get used to how “sluggish” your bike responds on “weaves” at normal travel speeds by lane changes. NOTE: don’t do this to scare the guy behind ya…could incite road rage. At 30 mph you can duck and weave in a relatively small space…. highway speeds…. not even near that space. Braking is different in time to.
Definitely recommend parking lot drills, heck you gotta learn to crawl before you can walk. Endlessly doing them and focusing just on that… your riding is gonna stay limited to corner store runs. Parking lots are great for basics, for “road worthiness” you are gonna have to hit the road.
As far as you car skills go…. not even relative. The physics, feel, reaction are all very very different.

[Munch]

Well there you go…. from a Rebel to an Author……wait… still trying to figure how that worked……. Give a man a 600 and he starts doing crazy stuff……..
Just kidding…. congratulations man!!
Now see…. you know I like ya…. I am fixin’ to go check it out.. .and I HATE Texas. Gotta support the family though… so I will take a gander.
“And I hope BBM’s and everyone’s New Year be a prosperous one. ” ROFLMAO… I read that as saying a Preposterous one.
Hope things keep climbing for ya !!!!

[Munch]

Nice jacket. I got alot of my gear from my local CG here. Got a Motoboss textile for Fall riding (is when I started). Got my chaps from there (if you don’t know I am a cruiser guy) some saddle bags that are on the now traded Vulcan 500, the cleaner S100 , definitely recommend that too. It doesn’t stop all manual labor during cleanings but makes it a whole lot easier.
Every time I go in there they ask if I need help and if I tell em I am just looking they leave me alone… very key for a good visit. If you have questions about size and fit of something there is always someone there knowledgeable and willing to jump in. Shame they don’t have more for us cruiser types though but oh well…. even some of the Sport bike gear is getting toned down enough to where its universal.

[Munch]

Whew…. got worried the first time I saw the site was offline…. glad its back!
So far so good…. maybe a lil less brightly lit….might would be my only suggestion. Other then that I can just play with my screen to suit me. All this light colors and small print makes it tough on tired eyes.
Love the new tool bar, though I was starting to remember some of my HTML the other way…now I can resume being lazy.

[Munch]

Lookin good! How ya liking the windshield?
Hard to get a good picture with chrome flashing everywhere aint it :^)

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Common sense exists!!! Problem is -if the ones around me are setting the bar
……. I am a genius!
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[Munch]

I get that look every morning…. as long as its above freezing…. I am riding.

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Common sense exists!!! Problem is -if the ones around me are setting the bar
……. I am a genius!
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[Munch]

Hmmm…. no critics among us? 1 week and notta…. is it that bad?

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Common sense exists!!! Problem is -if the ones around me are setting the bar
……. I am a genius!
**************************************************************

[Munch]

Not bad looking…careful border lining Punisher to the side of Fast and Furious…. though I suspect no funky fart pipes and hello kitty type stuff to pop up.
Actually thought about the same treatment for mine… but that would require me to turn a wrench on it and I refuse to… once i get started, my wallet is the only thing that stops me.

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Common sense exists!!! Problem is -if the ones around me are setting the bar
……. I am a genius!
**************************************************************

[Munch]

The “shavings” are more a very finite powder. Take a knife edge and rub it across a pencil tip and that’s pretty much what you’ll have.The travel is already free but as the cylinders heat up the swelling causes a slow “rub” effect until everything is flush. Not like your skinning anything. The metal in there is not big enough in small amounts to hurt alot but let it build up over time and it can seal oil ports and other areas.
Good example to see what I am talking about… if you have a GM car… drop the oil plug out, they are magnetized…most of em…to catch the “metal powder” as it passes by. There is also a magnet in the bottom of your automatic transmission pans to do the same thing.

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Common sense exists!!! Problem is -if the ones around me are setting the bar
……. I am a genius!
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[Author]

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